Mr.
Parker reported that there were no MAS officers present at the MAS meeting on
Wednesday evening. The campus officers present discussed the individual
campus fee increases, the proposed tuition increases and shared their ideas.

The
new delegates were introduced and a representative from each campus gave a
report on their campus.

He reported that MAS will be voting for a new MAS President, Vice President,
Treasurer and Secretary at their next meeting in July.

Further, he reported that MAS supports the Regents adopting tuition increases
for two years so that students would be better able to budget their college
costs.

They also discussed lowering MAS dues for the Colleges of Technology from $400
to $200.

MAS is planning to have a web page with a message board which would also be
linked to the Board of Regents web site.

Andy
Parker- President of ASMSU

Mr.
Parker reported that they just graduated over 2,200 students including 57 or 58
new Ph.Ds. The classes of 1941 and 1951 were gathered also, and planted
trees for the occasion.

Lt. Governor Ohs spoke to the School of Architecture commencement group.

Mr. Parker indicated that since he took office on April 8, he has been working
with President Gamble and it has been entertaining getting to know him. He
also sits with all the deans and vice presidents to prepare the budget,
including fees, tuition, transfer fees and late fees.

Christopher
Peterson – President ASUM

Mr.
Peterson reported there was a lot happening in Missoula, with this being finals
week and graduation to occur on Saturday.

Student government drew up resolutions on Same-Sex Health Insurance
Reaffirmation, the Workers’ Rights Consortium and Opposition to the Late
Registration Fee Increase.

He indicated the students reaffirmed the Environmental Audit on campus and
provided a copy of the report to the Board.

They also endorsed the Transportation Fee, the increased Parking Decal fee and
recycling on campus. Recycling generates $11,500 per semester. They
hope to put more bins around campus.

Students also support an increase in the University Center operation in order to
continue the operating hours with more activities and a Multicultural Alliance.

Missoula is one of the few cities included in the MTV Rock the Vote. They
hope it brings good support of local government.

Shawn
Isakson – President ASMT

Mr.
Isakson reported that their new student officers are Abby Osborne, Vice
President and Kelly Guzman, Treasurer. There was also a major change in
student senate, with many graduated, and others voted out. They had a good
voter turnout.

Three of their campus departments entered teams into competition in various
areas. The Environmental Engineering team took first place in the
International Environmental Design Contest held at New Mexico State University,
and brought home the traveling trophy on which their name can be found more than
once.

The Mining Engineering Dept. had four teams competing in the International
Mining Competition held in Reno, Nevada, and two of those tied for first place
with Australia.

The General/Mechanical Engineering team took fifth place against very large,
well financed schools in the Human Powered Vehicle Competition held in Reno,
Nevada. Some of the other teams were sponsored by such groups as Boeing.
Students from Montana Tech spent very little money on their entry, with
donations of parts and ingenuity.

Mr. Isakson noted that the Petroleum and Geological Departments at MT Tech are
world renowned, and they have outstanding students. Companies aggressively
seek them out. They were also awarded $25,000 for scholarships.

He
also reported that Tech has a radio station with a new studio. The old
studio will be used for recording by DJs and bands.

There was a large graduating class this year. The most recent year for
statistics, 1999 shows a 98% placement rate overall. Engineering degrees
have a 100% placement rate. In the past, the school has been known as a
place for men, but he noted they now have a new nursing program that had 17
graduates. All that enrolled graduated.

The
Student Entertainment Committee will be changed to an Activity Committee.
The various clubs and organizations will do their own activities with the
committee organizing the entertainment for all of them to eliminate duplicate
events on the same date.

Mr. Isakson reported that they want better funding for the cheerleaders to help
with their uniforms.

The
students are recommending the HPER fee and the Health fee.

They are expecting a big change in food services next year when they leave
Marriott Food Services and use the University of Montana Food Services.
They expect a much better quality food.

Chair
Thompson noted that the Montana Standard ran an article on Shawn and his sister
who is the President of the student body at the College of Technology in Butte.

Dan
Geelan – President ASMSU-N

Mr.
Geelan reported that in mid-April they had Campus Improvement Day. He
offered tribute to Stacey Roth, outgoing President of ASMSU-N who nearly
single-handedly masterminded the events. Spring games followed the clean
up with the women beating the men in a game of tug-of-war, and also winning by
default the tricycle race as the men were disqualified.

On April 27 they held their awards convocation with the Nursing faculty honoring
the entire Level 1 student group with an award to note the caring that embodies
all great nurses. This group of students rallied behind one of their
faculty members who had been diagnosed with cancer, and made dinners for the
family, cleaned the house and ran numerous errands. The faculty member
read an article she wrote about these students and it will be published this
summer in two national professional nursing journals. The fourteen
students were honored with Student Excellence Awards, the highest honors that
can be bestowed on students at MSU-N.

Commencement was held on May 5.

The Northern Lights wrestler Turk Lords was given the first ever Chancellor’s
Excellence Award after winning his fourth national title, a feat accomplished
fewer than ten times at either the NCAA or NAIA level.

Student
elections were held April 18. On the same ballot, students voted
overwhelmingly to support the campus radio fee and the new residence hall fee.

MSU-N has recently begun participation in the Sri Chomnoy Peace Blossom Program
with nearly fifty American institutions. The program is designed to
enhance awareness and consciousness of the need for world peace.

Summer session is now in full swing with finals for the pre-session taking place
next week. The first session starts the first week of June. Free
lunches will be given to full time students on Tuesdays beginning in June and
continuing until the end of summer session. At the same time, MSU-N
clothing will be given away during the lunches.

Mr.
Geelan reported that MSU-N has hired Brian Harrell as its new men's basketball
coach.

Jennifer
Gerondale - President, ASMSU-B

Ms.
Gerondale reported they held their senate elections gaining 13 new senators.
The new Vice President is Bryce Anderson.

Commencement was held on May 5 with separate convocations being held for each of
the colleges.

The
annual Easter Egg Hunt was held in April, with student government stuffing over
6000 eggs for children. Within 30 to 60 seconds of the bell, not an egg
was left. One of the participants was the Easter Bunny.

The Student Volunteer Association put together an on-campus project for Habitat
for Humanity. In two days, they built a shed for a needy family in
Billings and experienced what it was like to be homeless. On a chilly
night in April, the students put together a “Boxtown” and stayed outside
overnight in cardboard boxes. They were allowed to take only what would
fit in a backpack. For anything else, they depended on the generosity of
student donations – such as food and blankets. There was good media
coverage of the event.

Students are currently preparing for the annual Summerfest.

The students also support the proposed fee increases and the increase for
transcripts.

Wendy
Hanson-Thompson – Student Representative ASUM-Western

Ms.
Thompson reported that since the campus had changed its name, the student
government also changed its name. She indicated they are now called
ASUM-Western not ASUM-W.

The recent election had the largest ever turnout of student voters. Kim
Dolan was re-elected to the position of President and Jeremy Hoscherd is the new
Vice President.

More than 250 students graduated in May and Regent Semmens spoke on higher
education funding. The students thought his speech was great because it
was short!

Ms. Thompson reported that the addition to the Rural Tech Building is coming
along and probably will be complete in August. Other older buildings are
also seeing improvements.

Student government is trying to get a recycling program on campus.

She indicated work is being done on a variety of faculty searches.

Ms. Thompson noted that the radio station has finished its first semester in
operation. There have been many staff, students and community individuals
acting as DJs. The variety of music runs from Blue Grass, to Church music,
to Heavy Metal.

During the recent Legislative Session, a rally was held at Western with over 400
people participating including Regent Kobos. Although rallies seldom see
many participants at Western, this one had an excellent turnout. Students
were brought up to date on what was happening at the Legislature, and students
who had never been to the student senate offices showed up asking what they
could do to help.

Student government has been making students aware of the impending fee increases
to brace them for the shock.

Neal
DuBois – Vice President, ASMSU-GF CoT

Mr.
DuBois reported that students made Easter baskets for needy families, including
gift certificates to Albertsons.

They
also held a Faculty/Staff Appreciation picnic with a barbecue and volleyball.

They established a student government funded scholarship program to honor
retiring Dean Will Weaver. There will be two $1000 scholarships per year.

Students voted to increase the student government fee from $5 to $8 (a 60%
increase).

Commencement was held on May 10.

Student Government elections were held and April Keith is the new President,
Neal DuBois, Vice President and Michael Oaks, Business Manager. They will
be working for more student involvement.

In
preparation for the New Business Agenda Item 111-110-R0501
to be discussed on Friday, Commissioner Crofts gave background information on
the proposed tuition increases.Copies of his memo with this data were available at the meeting, and it
is also available on the web site.In essence, the Montana University System has been underfunded in the
amount of $25,000,000 for the next biennium.The policy in the Executive Budget Committee of the
Legislature and what was finally enacted was that all budgetary items would be
funded 50% by the state and 50% by tuition.Such a policy virtually ties the University System into significant
tuition increases.An
increase of 1% in the biennium equals $2.7 million in revenue.An increase of 5% is needed to simply cover the cost of the pay plan.Further cuts are unrealistic, and in fact the Montana University System
is the most efficient system in the region, and possibly the country.The University of Wyoming has been cited as an example of efficiency,
however they spend nearly $11,000 to educate a student whereas Montana spends
just under $7,000.

ITEM
111-1003-R0501 - Approval of Proposal to Reorganize the Department of
Management in the School of Business Administration into the Department of
Management and Marketing and the Department of Information Systems and
Technology; The University of Montana-Missoula

b.

ITEM
111-1901-R0501 - Approval of Proposal to Add an Option in Webmaster to
the Associate of Applied Science Degree in Computer Technology; Helena
College of Technology of The University of Montana

c.

ITEM 111-2004-R0501 -
Authorization to Change the Name of the Northern Plains and Rockies Center for
the Study of Western Hemisphere Trade to the Agricultural Marketing Policy
Center; Montana State University, Bozeman

d.

ITEM
111-2803-R0501 - Authorization to create an institute for researching
and teaching future trends and events related to rural factors in programs at
Montana State University-Northern

e.

ITEM
111-2851-R0501 - Approval of Proposal to Add an Associate of Applied
Science Degree in Dental Hygiene; Montana State University-Great Falls College
of Technology

Regent Roehm MOVED for APPROVAL to
MOVE all items on the SUBMISSION AGENDA to the
ACTION AGENDA for the July, 2001 meeting.

ITEM
110-1001-R0301 - Approval of Proposal to Establish a Department of
Print Journalism within the School of Journalism; The University of
Montana-Missoula

d.

ITEM
110-1002-R0301 - Approval of Proposal to Add Three New Option in Public
Law, American Politics, and International Relations and Comparative
Politics to the Bachelor of Arts Degree in Political Science; The University
of Montana-Missoula

ITEM
110-1004-R0301 - Approval of Proposal to Add an Option in Nature-Based
Tourism to the Bachelor of Science Degree in Recreation Management; The
University of Montana-Missoula Budget

g.

ITEM
110-1005-R0301 - Approval of Proposal to Add an Option in Microbial
Ecology to the Bachelor of Science Degree in Microbiology; The University of
Montana-Missoula

h.

ITEM
110-1006-R0301 - Approval of Proposal to Add an Option in Microbial
Ecology to the Master of Science Degree in Microbiology and the Doctor of
Philosophy Degree in Biochemistry/Microbiology; The University of
Montana-Missoula

i.

ITEM
110-1007-R0301 - Approval of Proposal to Add an Entry-Level Doctor of
Physical Therapy (DPT) Degree to the Present Entry-Level Master of Science
Degree in Physical Therapy; The University of Montana-Missoula

j.

ITEM
110-1008-R0301 - Approval of Proposal to Change the Name Montana
University Affiliated Rural Institute on Disabilities to The University of Montana Center for Excellence
in Developmental Disabilities Education, Research, and Service: The Rural
InstituteThe University of Montana Rural Institute: A Center
for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities Education, Research, and Service;
The University of Montana-Missoula

k.

ITEM
110-1901-R0301 - Approval of Proposal to Add an Option in Network
Architecture to the Associate of Applied Science Degree in Computer
Technology; Helena College of Technology of The University of Montana

l.

ITEM
110-1902-R0301 - Approval of Proposal to Change the Current
Two-Year Certificate in Automotive Technology to a One-Year Certificate in
Automotive Maintenance and Light Repair; Helena College of Technology of The
University of Montana

m.

ITEM
110-2002-R0301 - Authorization to Offer An Option in Family
Financial Planning under the MS Degree in Health and Human Development;
Montana State University-Bozeman

n.

ITEM
110-2851-R0301 - Approval of Proposal to Add a Medical
Transcriptionist Certificate Program; Montana State University-Great Falls
College of Technology

The
Commissioner explained that there was a single resolution for Tuition and Fees
for the next year, which was broken into his Tuition Rate memo, the Mandatory
Fees and Course Fees documents, and the Community College Tuition and Fees.He recommended that the decision on tuition be made for only a one year
period to allow adjustments in the second year of the biennium.He noted that in every calculation made, it was clear that
significant increases in each year of the biennium would be required.He also asked the Board to consider whether or not the 4%, 10% and 12%
increases would be sufficient.Although
this is what he recommended as increases, he indicated it was not enough for the
system to hold its own.He was open
to an additional percentage point increase to these recommendations.Additionally, he offered the suggestion of the possibility of a range of
tuition increases for the various campuses.MSU-Bozeman had requested an increase of 15%, in part caused by the
extraordinary utility and terminations costs.MSU-Northern required a 5% tuition increase simply to cover termination
costs.The balance of the campuses
requested between 11% and 13% (MT Tech).

There
ensued an extensive discussion on the needs of the campuses and an appropriate
tuition increase to support those needs.Regent
Jasmin indicated that since he has been on Board, it has tried to balance
access, quality and accountability.At
this point, quality is going down and it is now time to shift the focus to
quality.It was agreed by the
entire Board that quality has become paramount and that without substantially
increased funding, it would be in jeopardy.There was discussion among the Board members of raising tuition as much
as 15% in each year of the biennium. Additionally,
if the campuses are hit with a very high utility cost in the second year, that
will be covered by a surcharge to students, rather than being added into the
tuition.The campuses are also
requested to provide reports on productivity.

Regent
Semmens wanted the record to reflect that this increase in tuition was NOT being
used in place of managing expenses.The
increase is in addition to cutbacks and belt tightening on each of the campuses.He has received several e-mails from students and families supporting the
need for increased tuition.

Regent Kobos MOVED for Support of the Tuition Portion of Item a. of the NEW
BUSINESS
AGENDA as
follows:a 5% (including 1% for quality
improvements) increase in tuition for Colleges of Technology and the Lower
Division Credits at MSU-Northern and UM-Western and 13% (including 1% for
quality improvements) increases at the other campuses of the Montana University
System for each year of the FY 02-03 biennium barring unforeseen utility
increases, in which case those would be covered by a utility surcharge to be
established at the May, 2002 Board of Regents meeting.The Office of the Commissioner of Higher Education will report on
improvements in quality and productivity that are included in the operating
budgets as a result of this increase in tuition above and beyond what was
absolutely required to meet ongoing commitments.

Motion APPROVED unanimously

Regent Kobos MOVED for APPROVAL of the Tuition Portion of Item a. of the NEW
BUSINESS AGENDA as amended

Motion APPROVED unanimously on a Roll Call Vote.

MANDATORY
FEES in Item a.

There
was discussion of the various mandatory fees being proposed and what it would
mean to students on each campus.On
some campuses the increases are minor while on others they are larger.It was also explained that Information Technology fees were not rolled
into the Mandatory Fees since the students preferred a stronger voice in how
that fee is used.

Regent Jasmin MOVED for APPROVAL of the Mandatory Fees Portion of Item a.
of the NEW BUSINESS AGENDA

Motion APPROVED unanimously.

COURSE
FEES/MISCELLANEOUS FEES in
Item a.

The
Inventory of Course Fees and Miscellaneous Fees had not been completed at the
time of the meeting.However, the
Regents accepted the body of the Memo outlining the Proposed Changes in these
fees for each of the campuses.

Regent Roehm MOVED for APPROVAL of the Memo outlining the Course
Fees/Miscellaneous Fees Portion of Item a. of the NEW BUSINESS AGENDA

Motion APPROVED unanimously.

COMMUNITY
COLLEGE TUITION AND FEES
in Item a.

The
Community Colleges have their own Boards of Trustees, and they previously
approved the proposed tuition fees for their campuses.

Regent Jasmin MOVED for APPROVAL of the Community College Tuition and Fees
Portion of Item a. of the NEW BUSINESS AGENDA

Motion APPROVED unanimously.

b. Budget
Planning for FY 2002

There
was a general discussion outlining the extensive processes used on each campus
in developing budgets.It was noted
that the campuses are careful to make conservative estimates of projected
enrollment, and are meeting requirements set forth to increase inflationary
items such as budgets for Libraries and pay plans.With the approval of the tuition increase, some campuses plan
to improve under-staffed areas such as Financial Aid, Student Services and
faculty positions.Trash collection
may be improved at MSU-Northern and rather than rehiring a Director for the
Library, they may simply hire a Reference Librarian.MSU-Billings has invested several million dollars in energy saving
initiatives over the last several years and are still being adversely affected
by inflated utility costs.They
also expect many students to become part time rather than full time due to the
tuition increases.Regent Roehm
noted that part of the message that must be taken to the citizens of Montana and
the Legislature is the budget, and that it should be in a format that ties the
objectives and goals of each institution to the cost of accomplishing them.

END
OF NEW BUSINESS

The members of the Board of
Regents thanked Regent Kobos for the work she has done on behalf of the students
and citizens of Montana as the student member of the Board of Regents over the
past year. They commended her for the remarkable and eloquent manner in
which she performed her fiduciary responsibilities, as well as the courage she
has shown in her decision-making.

With no
further business to come before the Board, the meeting adjourned at 11:40 a.m.